


in capital

by gotchick



Category: GOT7
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, F/F, Genderbend, M/M, Multi, theres both gay and lesbian jjp
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-27
Updated: 2018-03-27
Packaged: 2019-04-13 20:37:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14120331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gotchick/pseuds/gotchick
Summary: marcie and jacqueline haven't been friends forever, but sometimes it feels like they have. they've had all their firsts together, ever since they met. so it seems like a natural rite of passage that in their first year of high school, they fall into first love together.(or, best friends to lovers au in which marcie and jacqueline work together on their crushes on two attractive upperclassmen, but can't help noticing that jaebum and jinyoung seem closer than best friends)





	in capital

marcie and jacqueline haven’t been friends forever, but sometimes it feels like they have.

since they met in their first year of junior high after becoming seat partners because there was no one in their class with names starting with k or l and they were next to each other in the register, jacqueline immediately claimed marcie as her best friend.

they’ve been through ups and downs, angst and joy together. at first, marcie was skeptical about why the most popular girl in class — with both the male and female population — would want _her_ , quiet, mousy, boring marcie tuan, as her bestie. she misunderstood jacqueline’s pure heart, suspecting that she just picked her because she would make the best sidekick, so she could outshine and stand out more beside marcie.

she couldn’t have been more wrong or sorry.

as they stumbled clumsily into best friendship, jacqueline convinced her that she genuinely saw and liked marcie for who she was, and wasn’t using her or mocking her. it was just her naturally low self-esteem speaking, herself projecting her poor self-image onto jacqueline’s earnestly extended hand of friendship.

jacqueline taught marcie that she was likeable and attractive, both as a friend and person. she helped marcie grow so much in the three years of junior high, blossoming from a wallflower into a swan. still, like any other person, marcie sometimes suffered from self-doubt. she was lucky that at these dark and lonely times, jacqueline was always here to comfort her and remind her of what a lovely person she was — or so jacqueline claimed.

 

they got their first periods together — literally within weeks of each other at the same age; and fell into their first crush together, on the same person — their physical education teacher. (how could they help it — he was young and hot, and they were younger)

they’ve had all their firsts together, ever since they met. so it seems like a natural rite of passage that in their first year of high school, they fall into first love together.

thankfully, it isn’t with the same person this time.

 

when marcie first realises her feelings for a notorious third-year delinquent, im jaebum, she’s hesitant to confide them in jacqueline at first.

not just because she’s shy and embarrassed, afraid of being teased as being a toad lusting after a swan who’s way out of her league. she’d never tell jacqueline, but she also feels a little threatened.

because of her easygoing nature and jacqueline’s big heart, theirs has been a friendship mostly free of cattiness and rivalry and the usual petty problems that plague some female friendships. it’s a good thing they have different types, too — besides that teacher in junior high, so they’ve never really had the misfortune to encounter the awkward situation of competing with their best friend for a boy’s affections.

but over the years, marcie has noticed something — she’d never have the balls to voice it out, because why would confident and adored jacqueline wang, queen of popularity, even need to one-up her — but marcie has been disgruntled to see jacqueline flirting with, and successfully winnng over, most of the few boys who were interested in marcie the last few years.

jacqueline’s coquettry techniques can be very subtle when she wants to, all eyelash-veiled looks and longing, loaded glances. she knows how to get teenage guys all hot and bothered, wrapped around her little finger and throwing themselves at her feet without even saying a word out loud.

and so marcie convinced herself she was once again being too sensitive, projecting her own insecurities and envy onto jacqueline’s innocent actions. it’s not jacqueline’s fault. any guy with eyes and a brain would choose her over marcie. if marcie were a guy, she would have a huge crush on jacqueline too. jacqueline is just that kind of person, who attracts people like moths to a flame. she can’t help it. it’s just how she is.

magnetic.

 

henceforth, all of marcie’s naive crushes so far never worked out. the boys might flirt with her shyly or even confess to her awkwardly or ask her out on a first date but that was as far as they ever got before jacqueline had their hearts on a string and marcie was just the lackluster best friend, paling in comparison.

she’s like the stars in the daytime sky. they’re there, but who can see them when the sun is shining so brightly?

and she doesn’t mind. she doesn’t mind that jacqueline eclipses her. she loves her too much to get upset over such a trivial thing. after all, as jacqueline explained when marcie asked why jacqueline herself never dated any of the queue of boys who are smitten with her seriously: boys come and go, but best friends are one and only. _chicks over dicks_ is jacqueline’s motto.

 

but recently, about around the time she started noticing jaebum, marcie has started feeling slightly stifled. she’s surprised herself, because jacqueline is the kind of person no one ever gets tired of, but marcie has started to feel that they’re _too_ close.

since they entered high school, applying for the same school even without thinking twice (even their four parents took it for granted that they would have to discuss the first choice with each other), marcie has started wishing for a bit more space, freedom from being glued to each other like a pair of siamese twins, all day, every day.

 _xing ying bu li_ , is how their parents fondly tease them as being. it pleases them both to hear that even their shadows are inseparable, but marcie has found herself, tratorously, wondering if their closeness isn’t just a little unhealthy.

just like with boyfriends, over the years, a few people who are similar to marcie and interested in getting to know her better have approached her timidly, but even if marcie got friendly with them and introduced them to jacqueline too, somehow it would always end up with only the two of them as a duo again, with the third party feeling distanced and shut out of the inside jokes jacqueline cracked and drifting away uncomfortably.

marcieandjackie; jackieandmarcie. people usually refer to them that way, because they do almost everything together. wherever marcie is, jacqueline is more often than not to be found.

and she likes it. she likes being part of a unit with jacqueline, who has as many female admirers dreaming of being her best friend as she does male. she’s honoured to be the only one jacqueline sees. but sometimes, like now, marcie can’t help wishing she had a little more of her own identity, someone eye-catching and unique.

or maybe she just wants more privacy to nurse her unrequited crush on im jaebum.

 

the day jacqueline discovers her dirty secret is unremarkable. it’s after school, and thinking that jacqueline is at fencing club, marcie is hiding out in the school library like the geek she is.

the nearly deserted library after school is an ideal location, not so much because she enjoys reading for pleasure but because it has a big window that overlooks the neighbouring building where she can see the empty classroom where detention is held every day.

of course, it’s somewhere the resident heartthrob — um, delinquent — turns up on a regular basis, looking bored and scruffy, roguishly breathtaking.

even better, it also has a nice view of the abandoned field behind the school where the wannabe gangsters and thugs, as well as some athletes, occasionally gather for a spontaneous soccer game.

jaebum isn’t on the team, but he plays beautifully. and marcie isn’t being biased at all.

 

today is a good day; she gets to see jaebum in his grass-stained gym shirt and muddy cleats with his hair boyishly tousled and sweat glistening off his skin. his shirt is pasted to the contours of his body with perspiration and he’s rolled up his sleeves to reveal drool-worthy biceps. the way he’s racing around the field, skidding fearlessly and sinking goals like some shoujo manga lead makes marcie want to capture the poetry of his grace on paper.

so she does.

she’s so engrossed in doodling that she doesn’t even hear jacqueline’s footsteps behind her until the sketch pad is snatched unceremoniously out of her hands. she swears that jacqueline walks like a cat sometimes — it must be because of the fencing, but she’s sleek and lithe and agile like a wild feline. marcie would almost call her poise ladylike if not for the fact that jacqueline is the biggest tomboy she’s ever met, unapologetically unfeminine. she even sits with her legs spread apart too widely for a girl (which of course none of the guys mind).

her pencil drops, her mouth dry as jacqueline crows appreciatively. her eyes take in the half-drawn rough outline of jaebum and marcie winces, waiting for jacqueline to burst out laughing incredulously. she half-hopes jacqueline won’t recognize who it is, but her heart sinks at her next words.

“so. im jaebum, huh?” she’s narrowing her eyes at marcie speculatively, still holding her drawing. “is this why you’ve been so cool lately, marciepooh? i thought maybe… you might be in lurrrve —“ jacqueline drawls out the word, making marcie blush — “but i didn’t realise this is your type.”

“what type?” marcie sounds overly defensive. oops.

jacqueline grins, reading her like a book. she gestures vaguely, finally dropping marcie’s sketch book on the table. “you know. the jock type.”

marcie is unable to help grabbing her book and hugging it to her chest protectively, glancing out of the window to check jaebum is still playing and not anywhere near where he could hear.

she hisses, self-consciously looking around. “jaebum’s not a jock.”

jacqueline’s eyebrows shoot up. she leans closer, bracketing marcie against her chair with one hand braced on the wall behind her and the other on the table. marcie shrinks back, avoiding jacqueline’s deeply amused smirk.

“whoa, feisty. already on first-name basis, are you? have you even talked to him before?”

marcie can feel her cheeks burning. she’s so mortified and flustered, she doesn’t even register that the second question is said in a more concerned than sarcastic tone. jacqueline is watching her closely, waiting for her answer eagerly.

“i haven’t, okay?” marcie grits out. “you guessed right; he doesn’t even know my name.”

she surprises herself with how bitter she sounds. but she just suddenly felt annoyed at how although jacqueline didn’t show it, she’s probably laughing at marcie inside, as she’s most likely spoken to jaebum before, maybe even more than once. she’s definitely on his radar, recognizable to him when they cross paths in school because there are few students of any level who don’t know jacqueline, at least by name and face.

maybe jaebum is one of the guys who have asked jacqueline out before.

marcie’s stomach twists at the thought. she wouldn’t be surprised if jacqueline revealed that, because the list of boys in school who are interested, both vocally and secretly, in jacqueline is longer than those who aren’t. plus, jacqueline is exactly what marcie would imagine as jaebum’s type — hot, spicy, sexy: everything marcie’s not.

 

she blinks back to reality to see jacqueline having drawn back a little, putting slightly more distance between them. she can’t recognize the look on jacqueline’s face for an instant because she seldom shows this expression. she looks hurt.

“i didn’t mean to be nosy, marc.” jacqueline’s voice is small, with that slight edge of belligerence that creeps in when she’s feeling vulnerable. it goes straight to marcie’s heart.

but before she can think of a reply, jacqueline continues — damn her slow reactions and jacqueline’s sharp reflexes. “it’s just that i have a crush too.”

marcie nearly chokes at jacqueline’s next, utterly unexpected words.

“what, on him?!” she manages to gasp, unable to quite hide the dismay in her voice.

“no, no.” jacqueline hastily waves her hands, as if anxious that marcie will misunderstand her intentions and start feeling animosity.

“on his best friend.”

“his… best friend?” marcie repeats like a dumb tape recorder.

jacqueline nods, smiling her bright smile again. “park jinyoung. you know him too, right? i’m sure you don’t notice only one guy.” jacqueline’s tone is teasing, but not unkind.

marcie blushes and lowers her head again. then she frowns. “wait… you mean… the head prefect?!”

jacqueline chuckles. “is there any other park jinyoung in the school who’s famous, hot and im jaebum’s best friend?” she fans herself exaggeratedly, making a swooning expression.

“but —“ marcie feels stupefied again. “i… never knew you liked him. i didn’t know… he’s your type.”

jacqueline laughs, tilting her head at her. “guess we don’t know each other as well as we thought, huh?”

“why didn’t you tell me earlier?” marcie demands, belatedly realising that she sounds accusatory.

jacqueline’s round eyes widen, looking bemused at marcie’s serious gaze pinning hers.

“neither did you,” she points out, voice low, then relents at marcie’s sulky pout and folded arms.

“okay, okay. i didn’t mention it because it wasn’t that serious. at least, not as serious as your crush appears to be. he’s just one of the guys in school i find cute. there are too many to list them all to you, and it’s not important anyway. no biggie.” jacqueline yawns.

“but you just said —"

“yeah, yeah.” not for the first time, jacqueline manages to read her mind without her completing her sentence. “recently, i’ve been noticing him more, that’s all. i was totally meaning to tell you, but i couldn’t find a right moment since you’ve been so busy mooning over im jaebum-ssi, and all.” jacqueline’s eyes are glittering with laughter again.

“fine! enough, stop jibing me about it already,” marcie pleads, helpless.

“i’m not,” jacqueline retorts. “i mean, i was having good feelings towards him recently, but i’d probably never have bothered to act on them… until you mentioned his best friend. now that i know we started crushing on this pair of best friends at the same time, it kinda feels like kismet, don’t you think?”

“kismet?” marcie echoes the english word jacqueline uses blankly.

“mm-hm!” jacqueline enthuses. “we could seduce them together.”

“ _seduce?!_ ”

marcie spends the next five minutes sputtering incoherently at the thought of her seducing anybody, much less intimidating bad boy im jaebum. jacqueline spends the same amount of time laughing so loudly that the librarian bustles up and clucks disapprovingly at them to get out.

 

somehow, some way, jacqueline managed to persuade marcie to agree to this harebrained, crazy “seduction plan”. she acquiesced, telling marcie they wouldn’t be doing any seducing — or at least, _she_ wouldn’t be — just dolling themselves up and giving each other makeovers and subtly trying to walk by jaebum and jinyoung in school, hopefully rousing their attention.

the most they will do is a little harmless flirting, demure smiles from afar and stuff like that, jacqueline promises solemnly like a girl scout. marcie can leave the hard stuff to her and just project a quiet and mysterious ice princess aura. (apparently, marcie has this aura, and apparently, guys dig that)

at the very least, they will be able to find more chances together to unnoticeably get closer to both boys, and see them in the flesh at close proximity more often than they do now. it’s this which tempts marcie — because it’s still the first quarter of the year, but before they know it time will fly past and the third years will be graduating. she probably won’t ever see jaebum again after he leaves the school.

the thought makes marcie feel disappointed, because although she has virtually zero hopes that jaebum will ever notice her, she feels bereft at the thought of never getting to know him better from watching and observing him in daily life.

 

jacqueline decides that they shouldn’t waste any time, so the next morning she turns up at marcie’s house when the sky is still dark, arms full with her makeup case and a cute tote bag stuffed with miscellaneous accessories and jewelry.

“but jackie, it’s against the rules to wear makeup and jewelry!”

jacqueline waves her concerns away, unperturbed.

“relax, babe. i’m an expert at doing natural makeup, no one will even know we’re wearing a stitch. do you notice me wearing it every day?”

“you wear makeup to school?” marcie gapes blankly, and jacqueline shrugs triumphantly.

“see?”

“but what about the jewelry? i don’t even have my ears pierced, and ear studs are the only accessories allowed in the school handbook!”

jacqueline looks at her incredulously. “you read the school handbook?”

“what?” marcie sputters defensively again. “we’re supposed to.”

jacqueline tosses her hair, and her stuff onto marcie’s bed, marching with purpose into her bedroom.

“we’re turning sixteen this year, marce. it’s time we stopped following the rules. and maybe… time you got your ears pierced too.”

marcie squeaks, hands flying protectively to her virgin earlobes.

jacqueline cackles.

“don’t worry, hon. i’ll be gentle.”

 

ten minutes later and after a lot of pillow-muffled squeals, marcie has studs in her swelling lobes and jacqueline is expertly swabbing her blood off the needle with more alcohol. she turns away, feeling slightly ill.

“no pain, no beauty.” jacqueline intones another of her mottos while keeping her stuff away without batting an eyelash.

“you’ll have to wait a few days to wear something better than the studs. i’ll check it out for you every day till it heals.”

marcie whimpers, fingering the ear sticks jacqueline gently inserted into her ears so the holes wouldn’t close up. they look pretty good, actually.

“you look fabulous,” jacqueline supplies, seeming to effortlessly guess what she’s thinking.

marcie blushes and throws a pillow at her.

“thanks. i guess.”

“you’re welcome.” jacqueline’s voice comes muffled from behind the pillow.

“it’s late, jac. we should start getting ready for school.” marcie checks her bedroom clock.

“hold your horses, cowgirl. i’m not done with getting you dressed yet.”

“jackie, there isn’t time!” marcie squeals. “we’ll get detention if we’re late.”

“is that such a bad idea?” jacqueline’s eyes glimmer at her knowingly, making her swallow.

“yes!” marcie bites her lip. this is not how she wants to get on jaebum’s radar.

or maybe she’s too chicken to admit she doesn’t want to be on it at all.

 

“all right, i won’t make us late, don’t worry.” jacqueline relents. “but your skirt is way too long. lesson one: long skirts are the most off-putting thing to guys.”

“my skirt is the regulated length…”

“which is too long. you have such great legs; if i were you i’d be dying to show them off.”

“your legs are better.”

“no,” jacqueline says flatly, cutting her eyes at her. “they’re fat and short.”

“it’s not fat! it’s all muscle!” marcie protests as though jacqueline is insulting _her_ legs.

“lesson two: guys don’t dig muscle,” jacqueline says glumly, which is the furthest possible thing from the truth. even if jacqueline was a bodybuilder, guys would still “dig” her.

“who cares? _me gusta_.” marcie doesn’t realise what she said until jacqueline’s eyes widen.

“did you just say _i dig it_ in spanish?”

“um.”

“marciepooh!” jacqueline tackle-glomps her down onto her bed. “ _wo ai ni_!”

“get off me, you’re heavy!”

“not till you say it back.”

 

eventually, jacqueline tosses her one of her skirts, since they really are running late by now and there’s no time to take the hem of marcie’s in and shorten it. marcie guesses it’s too loose even before she tries it — jacqueline is far from fat, but marcie is… um, kinda underweight. she’s not proud of it, but no matter how much she eats, she’s still stick-thin. it drives jacqueline, who has to diet to maintain her shapely figure and tiny waist, crazy.

they settle on folding up the waistline of marcie’s skirt a few times, so it reveals a few inches of her thigh above the knee. jacqueline drinks it in with appreciation, pretending to lick her lips like a boy, and marcie blushes and hits her.

she bemoans her scrawny and pale chicken legs, but jacqueline assures her they look coltish and creamy.

next, she sits on her bed and watches jacqueline do her hair busily in marcie’s mirror, a bunch of pins in her teeth because both her hands are occupied with teasing her high ponytail into the hair scrunchie.

jacqueline is so distracted, she doesn’t even notice marcie reaching out to tuck a loose tendril that has gotten free behind her ear again. the action makes jacqueline stop in her tracks, eyes widening.

marcie swallows, quickly dropping her hand. “sorry.”

“no, no! thanks! it looks good.” jacqueline’s eyes crinkle in a blinding grin at her, relaxing instantly. “now let’s work on you.” she rubs her hands together gleefully.

marcie self-consciously hooks her long, thick hair she usually wears in a boring low ponytail behind her ear. jacqueline grabs her hand, stopping her from reaching for her usual plain black hair tie.

“i’m not wearing your sparkly scruchies!” marcie protests vehemently.

after some bargaining, they acquiesce on allowing marcie to use her own black hair ties, but with the condition of dividing her hair into two ponytails instead of one (low ones, marcie insists, mortified), and adding a little colour with an elegantly bejewelled hair band of jacqueline’s.

“i’ll make you look like a _gongzhu_ ,” jacqueline promises, lapsing into the chinese word for princess. marcie blushes again, secretly trembling in excitement under jacqueline’s ministrations which are more gentle than a professional stylist’s.

 

finally, they are apparently done and can leave. the sun has long risen and marcie’s bedroom is flooded with light. she’s never seen jacqueline in the morning light of her room before, and she doesn’t know if it’s the makeover — which she was the main recipient of — or a trick of the sun, but jacqueline is glowing, beautiful.

there’s no way jinyoung is not going to notice her today. there’s no way any guy won’t.

but jacqueline doesn’t seem to notice any of the impact of her looks, instead squinting her eyes assessingly at herself in marcie’s full-length mirror again.

“do i look fat in this bra? it’s a push-up.”

marcie sputters. “no! you never look fat.”

jacqueline makes a disbelieving pfft sound. “okay, stick insect.” but she doesn’t say it in a jealous or demeaning tone, just teasingly.

“hang on.” marcie gulps as jacqueline’s eyes zoom in on her cleavage (or lack thereof). “are you wearing a sports bra or something? your boobs look flat as a washboard.”

“i’m just wearing a normal bra. that’s my natural size,” marcie retorts defiantly, abjectly embarrassed.

jacqueline makes a tutting sound. “then you have to make some subtle enhancements, homie. your rack is way smaller than all the other girls in our school. how will you stand out?”

“stop using guy-speak like rack and stuff!” marcie complains. “it’s so objectifying.”

jacqueline looks amused, suppressing laughter with a ladylike hand over her mouth. “i didn’t know you’re a feminist, marciepooh.”

“i think i should support feminism, as a girl. in my opinion.”

“don’t misunderstand me, mar. i’m the biggest supporter of it too. that’s why we’re going there today to knock those guys’ socks off. they won’t know what hit ‘em.”

“what has that got to do with my bra?”

“everything!”

before she knows it, for no apparent reason, jacqueline has unbuttoned her uniform shirt and stripped the front away to reveal her overflowing breasts spilling out of a frilly, lacy red bra.

marcie’s eyes dilate and saliva gathers in her mouth, almost as if she’s a guy.

“put that away!” she cries, more flustered than the flasher herself.

jacqueline snickers, buttoning herself up again, but the image of the valley between her pressed-together, milky-white and firm breasts is seared into marcie’s retinas.

“just showing you how a good push-up bra works, since we’re different sizes and you can’t borrow mine. you’re welcome.”

“why are you wearing red, anyway? it’ll be visible beneath the uniform.”

jacqueline wiggles her eyebrows at her. “that’s the whole point, angel.”

 

under jacqueline’s stubborn insistence, marcie finally unearths a more flattering bra from her closet and turns to face the wall for some decency, stripping and hooking it on.

“don’t look!” she yelps, face burning, although all jacqueline could possibly see is her back.

“i told you i wouldn’t,” jacqueline whines. “why are you such a prude, anyway? we’re both girls, there’s nothing i haven’t seen before.”

marcie huffs, having no answer. she finishes clumsily fastening the clasp and straightening her shirt.

when she turns back around tentatively, she nearly jumps out of her skin to hear jacqueline drawling appreciatively, with a low wolf whistle, “damn, girl, you stacked.”

she can’t possibly be talking about skin-and-bones marcie, even in her new bra — and when she looks up, she’s right. jacqueline’s talking to herself, grabbing her breasts through the uniform shirt and pirouetting in front of marcie’s mirror to admire her hourglass figure.

marcie has to admit, jackie isn’t being narcissistic at all. it’s completely true.

 

turns out, they were too complacent.

marcie is surprised when jackie admits that technically, jinyoung doesn’t know of her existence. at least, she thinks, because she’s never seen him glancing her way.

marcie reassures her that he probably does, just doesn’t let on. even among the third-year population, marcie is well-known as one of the cutest and sexiest first-year girls.

besides, as they strut through the school gates together, drawing confidence from their new looks and each other, marcie can’t imagine any guy not doing a double take at jackie.

they’re — she’s turning heads left and right as they walk down the corridors with their arms linked, but all marcie cares about is one head. or two.

they’re just in time for first period so there isn’t any opportunity to go up to the third floor, where the third-years’ classrooms are located. anyway, jackie says in the note she slides over their joined desks, recess is the best chance they’ve got.

jackie primps herself up in the girls’ bathroom the moment the recess bell rings, fusses over marcie’s hair a little, and then marches her out and towards the school canteen.

“are we going to see them now?!” marcie yelps, feeling frazzled and unprepared.

jackie nods. “of course. i know where they sit and eat usually.”

marcie has an inkling too, not that she would ever admit it.

“you’re not going to sit down with them, are you?”

jackie raps her head. “of course not, silly. that’s too forward. we have to play hard-to-get. guys eat that shit right up.”

marcie heaves a sigh of relief.

they don’t bother to queue up for food when they enter the teeming canteen, neither of them hungry. instead, they slow to a natural pace and start walking in the direction of jaebum and jinyoung’s usual table where they eat with a bunch of other third-years.

they saunter past airily but carefully, pace dropping to almost slow-motion. jacqueline flips her hair over her shoulder, swinging her hips a little more than usual and a handful of guys sitting nearby look up to stare.

jaebum and jinyoung are chatting with each other in that casual way dudes do as they eat, smiling. but they’re not really looking at each other as they talk, mostly facing forward. which puts marcie and jacqueline perfectly in their line of view as they walk past a few paces away.

marcie feels like she’s hyperventilating. she’s pretty sure it’s the first time jaebum will look at her, actually _look_ at her, and see her. well, maybe he’ll notice jacqueline first, his eyes straying automatically to her like any other boy. but he’ll have no choice but to notice marcie beside her too.

jackie has this smug smile laced on her lips too, although she’s playing it cool. it’s only because marcie knows her so well that she can read jackie’s thoughts. jackie squeezes her hand in excitement. her hand is smooth and cool against marcie’s clammy one.

 

and then… nothing.

jaebum and jinyoung don’t glance up. neither even seem to notice or glimpse either marcie or jacqueline. it doesn’t make sense, because nearly all the rest of the guys at their table have stopped eating to check jacqueline out. a few of them wink at marcie and jacqueline coolly, eyes admiring. jackie doesn’t even notice.

jaebum and jinyoung aren’t even talking to each other anymore, just eating. but for some reason they didn’t see them at all. none of their friends helpfully elbow them to check out the sight either.

jackie makes a huffing noise under her breath. marcie inhales softly as jackie tightens her hand on hers and tugs her forward, out of their sight line.

when they have strode briskly in silence out of the canteen, jackie is quiet. marcie knows she’s baffled, disgruntled that her meticulously-calculated plan has failed. none of jackie’s schemes to attract a guy’s attention have ever not worked, beautifully. it’s probably the first time jackie is getting a taste of the feeling of being spurned.

“well, that went swimmingly,” jackie deadpans, breaking the silence. her choice of words makes marcie’s lip twitch unexpectedly.

it’s just — jackie is so _funny_. marcie can’t not laugh every time she cracks a joke, no matter where they are.

marcie turns to look at her, and is surprised to see jackie looking less annoyed than intrigued, less piqued than interested.

“i can’t believe they didn’t look at you!”

“i can’t believe they didn’t look at _you_.”

marcie blushes more than she did walking before the boys, because the way jackie is looking at her, down her body from head to toes, is wondrous, tender. if she’s being completely honest, it’s probably the way she wished jaebum had looked at her earlier.

“maybe they’re gay.” jackie rolls her eyes, flipping her hair again. she’s not being egoistic, once again — it’s merely a fact that most of the only men who aren’t interested in jackie aren’t interested in females, period. bar a handful, jackie is everybody’s type.

“maybe,” marcie hums, and they both burst into laughter, neither actually believing it might be possible.

 

“so what now?” marcie asks, chugging down the can of soda jackie’s just bought her from a vending machine they passed. jackie extends a hand to ask for a sip and she passes it over easily.

she watches jackie’s peach-tinted lips close delicately over the mouth of her can. if jackie hadn’t told her, she would never have noticed the gloss wasn’t natural.

her own lip gloss has smudged off a little on the can, and she wonders if jackie can taste it. probably not, since they’re wearing the same flavour. she licks her lips, still finding the taste foreign like the prickly feeling of the minimal coat of mascara jackie had applied for her on top of the thinnest touch of eyeliner. it’s not the first time marcie’s worn makeup, but it still feels as tiresome and unsuited to her as it did the first time.

after a few sips, jackie’s eyes flicker up to catch her gaze, and she flinches, immediately dropping her eyes. “are we going to give up?” she mutters, to make jackie stop watching her so curiously.

the two words work successfully to agitate jackie into exclamation. “give up?! marc, you know i never contemplate that phrase! ever!”

“i know, i’m sorry,” marcie placates her appeasingly. jackie is pouting and glaring at her, adorably stern.

“plus,” jackie adds, a dreamy glint entering her eye that makes marcie’s heart skip a beat, “i wasn’t all that interested in park jinyoung before, but now i want him more than all the other guys.”

“you always want what you can’t have.”

the words slip from marcie’s mouth before she realises, and she clamps it shut, alarmed.

but jackie just grins, unoffended. “you know me the best, marce.” she tugs on one of marcie’s ponytails playfully, and marcie pretends not to enjoy it, squirming away.

 

“plan b,” jackie announces, twirling marcie’s ponytail around her wrist. “we make friends with their sisters, and get an introduction through them.”

“their sisters?” marcie parrots again. it’s a known fact in school that jaebum and jinyoung have younger sisters who just entered the school as freshmen too, and that they’re the reason jaebum and jinyoung are best friends in the first place.

apparently, their younger sisters met in junior high, and started hanging out together. they ordered their older brothers to ferry them around whenever they went out, being their personal chauffeurs, until they had no choice but to become acquainted too. that explains the mystery of why the most popular model student in school is besties with the baddest boy.

marcie has seen jaebi and jiyoung, who are in another class, around school. but she never thought about approaching them, because the thought is even more daunting than speaking to jaebum. besides jackie, they’re the other two “campus flowers” in the first year who are also on the cheerleading team.

“you mean… the cheerleaders?” she confirms, still wishing she heard jackie wrongly.

but jackie only beams, nodding eagerly.

“do you know them?” marcie gapes.

jackie shakes her head, still smiling. “but we will by tomorrow.”

before marcie can even open her mouth, jackie has slung her arm around her shoulders and is leading them away, a spring in her steps. she’s already forgotten about the issue, complaining that she’s famished and could eat a horse.

 

eventually, marcie stops worrying and lets herself be led away by jackie. although they only have time to get light snacks and didn’t succeed in drawing jaebum’s attention — this recess, just like every one marcie has spent with jackie, has been surprisingly fun.

come to think of it, she can’t think of any occasion she’s been together with jackie that hasn’t been loads of fun and laughter.

after what happened today, jaebum and jinyoung feel more unattainable and unapproachable than ever. but strangely, with jackie by her side, marcie feels like this mission impossible may, perhaps, be possible.

 

 

 

bonus scene (just for laughs)

“no offense, but is literally everyone in this school gay?” jaeyoung exclaims in astonishment. “i mean, i came from an all-girls’ junior high and there wasn’t even this much experimenting going on…”

“none taken,” jacqueline replies pleasantly, seeming pleased as punch at her observation of this fact. marcie kind of understands how she’s feeling — it’s a pretty nice feeling that they didn’t discover their sexuality alone, having the fortune to face this upheaval together with a group of bosom friends.

“well, i’m not,” bambi points out. “and neither is yugyeom oppa. you’re straight too… right?”

all their eyes bulge in unison at jaeyoung’s coy look, but bambi’s larger than anyone’s as jaeyoung bats her eyelashes at yugyeom, who looks bemused.

“i thought i was when i met gyeom. but then i met bambi, and started questioning my sexuality. guess that makes me bi.” she shrugs, unperturbed. her second sentence makes yugyeom and bambi switch roles as he protectively drapes an arm around her shoulder.

jaeyoung just wiggles her eyebrows at them, smirk unflagging. “sup, guys? interested in a threesome? you can hit me up anytime.”

jacqueline yelps and slugs her shoulder.

“what is up with you and threesomes, seriously? are you planning to proposition us all?”

“all in time, unnie. all in time.” jaeyoung is smiling like the cat who swallowed the canary. jacqueline shudders rudely.

 

“jaeyoung has a point,” jaebi agrees, speaking up rarely to support her BFF. “seeing as almost everyone in our clique happens to be gay, it would be a waste not to make use of this fate to create the school’s first LGBT club or something.”

jiyoung is quick to nod at her girlfriend’s words too, not wanting to be left out.

“easy. unnie and i will just invite our brothers to join too,” she rejoins when jacqueline points out that they only have bisexuals and lesbians gathered at the current scene.

“are you guys serious?!” yugyeom squeaks. his hand shoots up into the air when they all nod sagely. “then i nominate myself president!” bambi beams at him proudly, obviously swooning at her boyfriend’s broad-mindedness.

**Author's Note:**

> happy birthday jackson!
> 
> i wrote this wip last year and then kinda forgot about it, but decided to post it now because i'm probably never going to finish it bc i've forgotten and lost the groove to write most of the remaining epic, complicated and ridiculous plot i planned (it was going to be a chaptered fic lol). but i didn't want to chuck the wip because i worked kinda hard on it and since i think it can be read as a standalone oneshot, i decided to post it for jackson's bday cuz i have nothing else to post lol. it's just for fun and i apologise if the ending feels abrupt or disjointed, but i'd be happy if any readers get a little reading pleasure from this ^^
> 
> i think the rest of the plot is pretty obvious from the bonus scene but if you're confused, i'll be happy to answer questions! also, if anyone is interested in writing a continuation to this (or even from jjp's pov), please feel free! since it's unlikely i'm continuing this unless i get really inspired or something, i totally don't mind if another writer just picks up where i left off.
> 
> i also wanted to give a random shoutout to chanyeolanda, who i met during kpop ficmix last year, and who wrote me a fantastic genderbend fic and then had a really memorable and fun conversation with me. you mentioned that you read some of my fics, so on the off chance that you ever see this, i just wanted to say that you're the person i'd want to dedicate this little fic to most :") if you like genderbend and jinson, you may want to check out her ficmix for me which is delightful! <3
> 
> wishing every single one of my subscribers a 2018 filled with happiness and love :)
> 
> edit: i decided to change the title to something i felt fit better, it's a lyric from one of my recent fav songs, hailee steinfield's capital letters! also i realised there isn't very much jjp because i didn't get the chance to write more, i hope readers aren't too disappointed, i didn't mean my mention of them to seem clickbaity haha
> 
> thank you to everyone who took the time to read this whole fic! :3


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